As the prime location of the Maple Kingdom, Sheng Tian's four city gates were always bustling with activity.
Especially during the summer, the influx of merchants from various regions reached a peak, resulting in long lines outside the city gates. It was only after a considerable wait that Li Qing's carriage was finally allowed to enter.
The journey back was expedited, as he was carrying a small tiger that was barely a month old and needed to be fed. Thus, the trip took less than two days.
“Roar! Roar!”
The little tiger had been hungry for over a day and was now incessantly complaining and howling at Li Qing.
“Sigh, what a glutton. From now on, I'll call you Glutton,” Li Qing said with a wry smile as he picked up the little Glutton, who waved its tiny paws in the air, seemingly expressing its dissatisfaction with the name.
When he first found the little Glutton, it was weak and barely clinging to life. Li Qing had only taken it in on a whim, but after feeding it, the little tiger quickly regained its vitality and began to bounce around energetically.
“They say that surviving a great disaster brings future blessings. You’ll enjoy a good life with me from now on,” Li Qing chuckled, setting the little Glutton down and scratching its head.
Soon, the carriage passed through the city gate inspection. After casually handing a few taels of silver to the guards, Li Qing successfully returned to Sheng Tian.
For private carriages, inspections were generally more lenient, mainly checking for the smuggling of salt and iron, which were taken very seriously in the Maple Kingdom.
Upon returning to Sheng Tian, Li Qing did not rush back to his blacksmith shop but first visited the Spring Mountain Medicine Hall to retrieve the Five Poisons he had stored there.
Afterward, he found a shop in the city that specialized in dairy products from the grasslands. In this era, dairy products were considered a luxury, even among wealthy families.
Due to the difficulties in preservation and transportation, milk was much more expensive than meat.
To ensure the little Glutton grew up healthily, Li Qing ordered a batch of fresh sheep's milk from the shopkeeper, who was dressed like a grassland herdsman, requesting daily deliveries to his blacksmith shop.
“Sigh, I have no experience raising tigers. It should be similar to raising a cat during its early years, starting with sheep's milk, and later switching to meat when it can eat solid food.”
Li Qing muttered to himself, feeling somewhat troubled, thinking that raising this little Glutton would likely cost him a fair amount of money.
Fortunately, he wasn't currently short on funds. If he needed more, he could always make a trip to the Eternal Night World to bring back some valuable items.
Raising a little Glutton was still within his means.
Moreover, he brought back the little tiger mainly because he wanted a reference when practicing the True Intent of the Fierce Tiger in the future. His battle with the fierce tiger at Xiao Cuiling had been quite enlightening, and having a tiger by his side could accelerate his progress in this martial art.
Although Li Qing was skeptical that this soft and cuddly little tiger could ever match the might of its mother while being raised in his home!
“Grow up quickly; I’m not raising you for free!”
Back at the blacksmith shop, Li Qing let the little tiger, who had been nestled in his arms, out to frolic on the ground. After feeding it some sheep's milk, he fashioned a makeshift tiger den and left it to its own devices.
Next came the real plan for brewing wine!
On the neighboring street, at the Peach Blossom Tavern.
As soon as Li Qing entered, he heard numerous patrons drinking and boasting.
“Hey, you wouldn’t believe it! That female captain of the Wuli Army is ruthless, unlike any woman. She’s killed four or five troublemaking external strength martial artists in a row!”
“Heroine Qian Hong has been fighting since childhood, trained in a superior family martial art, so her skills are indeed formidable, especially against the Qian family.”
“Tsk tsk tsk, a woman who puts herself out there is quite something.”
“Hey, brother, I advise you not to say that in front of her. Just the other day, one troublemaker who teased her ended up dead.”
“Hiss!” The tavern filled with wandering martial artists collectively gasped.
Of course, some looked disdainful, always underestimating what a martial artist woman could achieve.
After listening for a while, Li Qing quickly realized who they were talking about. There was only one female captain in the Wuli Army, and aside from Qian Hong, who else could it be?
Li Qing continued to pay attention to the happenings in Sheng Tian during this time and confirmed that nothing particularly noteworthy had occurred before he got down to business.
“Boss, what’s the name of your strongest liquor?”
Li Qing leaned against the counter and asked.
Clearly, the boss had answered this question countless times before. He replied directly, “The strongest liquor we have here is Jiu Yun Chun, Shao Daozi, and San Wan Dao!”
“Even skilled martial artists from the rivers and lakes wouldn’t dare to drink too much of these. Which one do you want?”
“Give me five jars of each, and have them delivered to the blacksmith shop on Chiming Street next door,” Li Qing said nonchalantly.
Whether it was Tiger Bone Health Wine or Five Poisons Blood Invigorating Wine, both recipes required strong liquor for brewing, and the stronger, the better.
This time, Li Qing had prepared a substantial amount of tiger bone materials, so he needed quite a bit of liquor; brewing over a dozen jars was no problem.
Upon hearing Li Qing's large order, even the boss was taken aback, immediately sizing him up with a different expression.
“Sir, do you really want that much?”
“What? Don’t you have that much liquor in your tavern?” Li Qing asked with a smile.
“Hahaha, of course not! What are you talking about? Our tavern is short on everything but liquor!” The boss laughed, rubbing his hands together before saying, “What’s the price then?”
Clang!
Li Qing pulled out a gold bar, its shiny luster making it hard for the boss to look away.
“Money is not an issue. Just get the liquor delivered quickly, and don’t forget to bring two jars of Dongmei as well.”
“Alright, sir, just wait a moment! I’ll have the waiter bring it over right away!” The boss beamed with joy.
Dongmei was a well-known fine wine in Sheng Tian, and Li Qing enjoyed drinking it regularly. It was strong but not as harsh as other liquors.
After completing this transaction, Li Qing strolled out of the tavern.
He clearly noticed that once he left, the tavern became somewhat quiet.
Most of the patrons were from the rivers and lakes, and his large purchase of liquor would surely attract the attention of some keen observers.
Though Li Qing could avoid this issue by buying a jar every now and then, spending just over a hundred taels of silver wouldn’t draw the attention of internal strength martial artists.
Now that his martial arts had improved significantly, he could be considered among the top ranks even among external strength martial artists, so he was not overly fearful.
‘This is a good opportunity to test my current level and see how well the Wuli Army maintains order in the imperial capital.’
Li Qing thought to himself, his steps becoming lighter.
Everything was going according to plan.
(End of Chapter)